The Chicago Bears finished their 2025 season with an 11-6 record, winning the NFC North title and earning their first playoff win in 15 years under first-year head coach Ben Johnson. There is no denying that the future is extremely bright.
Over the next few weeks, we’ll be counting down the 15 most impactful Bears of the 2025 season, including many of the young talents who contributed greatly to Chicago’s magical season. We’ll look back at their 2025 seasons and look ahead to how they impact 2026. There is a lot of top talent to watch this season, which makes for tough decisions when narrowing the roster down to just 15 players and/or coaches.
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Our No. 12 most impactful Bears running back is Kyle Monangai, a seventh-round pick who forms a dynamic duo with D’Andre Swift to give the Bears the league’s third-ranked rushing attack.
basic knowledge
Most Influential Bear of 2025: Kyle Monangai
2025 Statistics
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169 carries, 783 yards, 5 touchdowns
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30 targets, 18 catches, 164 yards
2025 review
For much of the 2025 offseason, the Bears seemed destined to select a running back in the NFL Draft. Players such as Ashton Jeanty, Trevyan Henderson and Caleb Johnson have been mentioned as possibilities to provide a skilled playmaker for Ben Johnson’s offense. The Bears came up against expectations when they waited until the seventh round to select Kyle Monangay. Despite being a late-round pick, Monangay quickly made a strong first impression and became the primary backup behind DeAndre Swift. His first big opportunity came in Week 7 against the New Orleans Saints, when Monangay rushed for 81 yards on 13 carries and scored his first touchdown. However, it wasn’t until Week 9 that he made a name for himself. Monangai started in place of the injured Swift against the Cincinnati Bengals and ran 26 times for 176 yards. This is the second-most rushing yards in a single game by a rookie in Bears history. Since then, Monangay has seen more opportunities, forming dangerous one-two punches with Swift and creating more memorable moments. Monangay’s punishing running style paired well with Swift’s speed, and the rookie played a big role in the offense’s success, although he did appear to hit a rookie wall in the final few games of the season.
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Outlook 2026
Success at running back may be fleeting, but Monangai should remain a consistent contributor heading into year two. He just might not be able to transition into a full-time starter. In this offense, however, that doesn’t matter. Johnson prefers to use multiple running backs, while Monangay will continue to play a key role between the tackles. The big question is whether he’ll still play with Swift, who’s not certain to return in 2026 as she enters the final year of her contract. We’ll see what happens at the position, but Monangay should continue to develop into a running back who can rush for over 800 yards in a season.
This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: The Most Influential Bears of 2025: No. 12 Kyle Monangai